Language & Intercultural Communication
Editor: Dr John Corbett (University of Glasgow)
Associate Editor: Robert Crawshaw (Lancaster University)
Reviews and Criticism Editor: Dr Fiona J. Doloughan (University of Surrey)
Editorial Board: Gavin Jack (University of Stirling)
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Volume: 1 Number: 2 Page: 101–119
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Attesting the Self: Narration and Identity Change During Periods of Residence Abroad
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Robert Crawshaw, Beth Callen and Karin Tusting
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This paper, arising out of the work of The Interculture Project, considers the relationship between student diary writing and the formation of personal identity as it occurs in cross-cultural situations.
With particular reference to Grossberg (1996), we critically review the 'figures' associated with the concept of identity and argue that identity cannot be satisfactorily accounted for by separating 'intrinsic'
from 'extrinsic' attributes. Instead, we follow an approach which accepts Kristéva's Freudian analysis of the outsider phenomenon and sees identity as a continuous process of discursive construction
involving voluntary acts of self-differentiation through language. In this, we follow Ricoeur's (1990) distinction between ipse and idem and the associated notion of attestation according
to which language verifies and 'bears witness' to who we are. We illustrate the validity of Ricoeur's approach by identifying a set of discursive features which occur in an extended student diary in which
the author distances himself from his own statements and comments on his own responses to living in another cultural environment. Our analysis posits the existence of an 'intercultural self' whose identity
is contained within the dynamic of one's own language and we draw conclusions from this analysis for the preparation of students for residence abroad.
'Attestation' et identité: narration and développement
personnel pendant des périodes de résidence à l'étranger. En passant en revue les différentes 'figures' reprises par Grossberg (1996) et Hall (1996) dans leurs analyses
de la notion d'identité personnelle, cet article met en cause l'opposition entre des perspectives intrinsèques (essentielles) et extrinsèques (constructivistes) proposée par
Grossberg. Il cherche plutôt à lier une approche freudienne à la notion d'attestation développée par Ricoeur (1986) selon laquelle l'identité consiste à se
différencier d'autrui et s'engager volontairement vis-à-vis de l'autre à travers le discours et, en ce faisant, de se construire une perception de soi-même dans le temps. A l'appui
de notre approche, nous examinons des manifestations de ce processus dans l'analyse des procédés discursifs déployés dans un journal personnel rédigé par un étudiant
britannique résidant à l'étranger.
© Multilingual Matters 2001
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